Hartford Business Journal

www.HartfordBusiness.com March 30, 2015 • Hartford Business Journal 7 wHaT'S aHead: ■ 4/6 Focus: women in Business awards ■ The List: largest women-owned companies ■ Nonprofit Profile: cT institute for the Blind calendar Wednesday, april 1 Women of Innovation Awards Gala The Connecticut Technology Council will host its Women of Innovation awards gala April 1 to recognize accomplished women in science, technology, engineering. The event, which runs from 5 p.m.-9 p.m., will take place at the Aqua Turf Club in the Plantsville section of Southington and will bring together like-minded, successful women to celebrate their accomplishments. A total of 56 women have been selected as Women of Innovation for this year. All honorees will be recognized and a winner in eight different award categories will be announced at the event. This year's keynote speaker is Cecilia K. McKenney, Frontier Communications' executive vice president of human resources and administrative services. F O r a C O m P l e T e l i s T O F G r e a T e r H a r T F O r d b u s i n e s s e v e n T s , G O T O w w w . H a r T F O r d b u s i n e s s . C O m a n d C l i C k O n ' T H e a G e n d a . ' a l l C a l e n d a r i T e m s m u s T b e s u b m i T T e d e l e C T r O n i C a l l y v i a O u r w e b s i T e , H a r T F O r d b u s i n e s s . C O m . reTail 207-year-old CT furniture store to close Baker's Country Furniture in Stafford, which bills itself as the oldest furniture store in the country, said it will close. Founded in 1808 as G.H. Baker, the business today is located in the Stafford Springs section of town — less than a mile from its original site. Husband and wife ownership team John and Patty Rossi said in a statement that they were closing the store to pursue other interests. They didn't say exactly when the store would close, but a going-out-of-business sale kicked off March 26. real eSTaTe CT home sales thawed in February Statewide home and condominium sales rose in February, re- bounding from January's chilly performance, Realtors said. Closed sales of single-family houses hit 1,532 units last month, up 9.1 percent from 1,404 closings the same month last year, the Connecticut Association of Realtors said last week. Median sales price was flat at $225,000 in February vs. $227,000 a year earlier, the association said. Median price means half the houses sold for more, the rest for less. Condo/townhome sales last month rose 6.4 percent to 417 vs. 392 a year ago. Their median sales price also was flat at $142,000 vs. $142,850 a year earlier. A frigid, snowy January cut into sales of Connecticut single- family houses last month, while demand for condominiums/ townhouses grew. energy & uTiliTieS CT to decide $224M energy efficiency spending plan The Connecticut Energy Efficiency Board will hold a public hearing in April to discuss how to spend $224 million collected for business and residential improvements. The bulk of the money for the Connecticut Energy Efficiency Fund comes from a fee charged to electric and natural gas rate- payers on their utility bills. The fund also receives money from places like the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative auctions, which charge power plants for their pollution. The board will host its public hearing from 9 a.m. to noon April 8 at the Department of Energy & Environmental Protection on 79 Elm St. in Hartford. DEEP pumped 1M gallons of boat sewage in 2014 The Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Pro- tection's pumpout facilities last year removed a record 995,000 gallons of sewage from recreational vehicles in Long Island Sound and Candlewood Lake. The pumpout effort was an attempt by DEEP to prevent recreation- al boaters from dumping their sewage into the state's waterways. To keep up the effort this year, DEEP has awarded $1 million in funding from the Federal Clean Vessel Act to 44 marine facilities to continue pumpout operations, including building or replacing facilities. Cecilia K. McKenney Orafol Americas selected EMCOR Services New England Mechanical (NEMSI) to install a new central chilled water plant at their 98,000 square foot facility in Avon, CT. NEMSI had been providing mechanical service and maintenance for over 15 years to the site. NEMSI delivered a creative, cost-effective solution that tripled the size of the process chilled water system, eliminated the negative pressure problems in the building, and addressed noise issues voiced by neighbors. The team overcame unforeseen schedule delays, secured a large utility incentive, and coordinated with the site expansion work, to minimize the capital expenditure and keep their process energy costs virtually unchanged. EMCOR Services New England Mechanical Helping Orafol Americas Achieve Maximum Energy Efficiency O f f i c e s i n : V e r n o n | N e w L o n d o n | T r u m b u l l | P a w t u c k e t , R I | P a l m e r , M A | A l b a n y , N Y Call: 860.871.1111 Toll Free: 800.741.6367 Visit: www.nemsi.com Orafol Americas counts on NEMSI to design, install, maintain, and protect their building's most important systems. What Can We Do For You? » HVAC, Plumbing & Process Piping » Design-Build Construction » Energy Management Systems » LEED Certification Programs » Electrical Services » Comprehensive Preventive Maintenance Programs » 24/7/365 Emergency Response License #s: E1-104939 • S1- 302974 • P1- 203519 F1- 10498 • SM1-192 • MC-1134 The NEMSI solution at Orafol was the winner of two prestigious construction industry awards. Baker's Country Furniture occupies a Victorian home that is less than a mile away from the original store founded in 1808. P H O T O | C O n T r i b u T e d

• Cover